Jhamon Ausbon is adjusting to an atypical schedule for a high school student.

On a normal day at IMG Academy, a sports-driven prep school in Bradenton, Fla., two or three 90-minute classes are on tap, followed by workouts and team meetings, followed by 90 more minutes of homework. Curfew is 10 p.m., and lights go out at 11 p.m. Ausbon will get up at about 7 a.m. and repeat the cycle.

At his disposal on the 584-acre campus are a state-of-the-art weight room, locker room and stadium that rival some college facilities. Another weight room is being built. Ausbon's coaches have years of experience in the NFL and major college football. There is even a nutritionist.

Ausbon, a wide receiver who played at Episcopal and St. Thomas, enrolled recently at IMG and discovered that beyond the facilities and coaches, he found something he couldn't get at any school in Houston.

Translator

To read this article in one of Houston's most-spoken languages, click on the button below.

"The cornerbacks here, I can already tell the difference," Ausbon said. "It's tough competition every day here in practice. I'm ready to play the best teams in the nation with the best people in the nation."

Ausbon already has committed to sign with Baylor in 2017. He is joined at IMG by San Antonio Reagan quarterback Kellen Mond, who also has committed to Baylor for 2017. Freshman offensive lineman E.J. Ndoma-Ogar, an up-and-coming 2019 college prospect from perennial Texas high school power Allen, will be an IMG Ascender as well. So, too, is Dylan Moses, a linebacker from Louisiana, who is projected as the nation's No. 1 overall prospect for 2017.

National presence

IMG is not college football. Some say it's not high school football. It lies somewhere between, and it has its critics. It has made its presence known in Texas.

Originally known for tennis when Nick Bollettieri founded the Academy in 1978, it has grown to include eight sports on campus (football just finished its third season). IMG Academy just finished its third season of football. In baseball, it was a stopping point for a pair of former Astros draft picks, Brady Aiken and Jacob Nix.

The school is an independent member of the Florida High School Athletic Association but does not compete for a state title. Instead, it plays a national schedule on TV - the Ascenders twice played on ESPN last year - and it recruits nationally.

"It's not that these are the first Texas kids that we've had," said IMG Academy coach Kevin Wright, a former high school coach in Indiana. "It's just probably they're the most high-profile kids that we've had."

IMG Academy is owned by IMG, the global sports management and media company. The football program is under the direction of Steve Walsh, the former Cowboys, Saints and Bears quarterback. Boarding tuition for football in 2016-17 is $72,900, but many of the top players receive need-based financial aid. Considering everything IMG offers athletically along with a rigorous academic schedule, it's seen as a move that prepares recruits for major college football like nothing else.

Feeling a backlash

It also has drawn the ire of coaches from across the country.

Coaches believe IMG Academy professionalizes high school football and doesn't play by the same rules.

"When I got the job, one of my buddies from Florida who coached down here said, 'Welcome to Florida,' " said Wright, who just finished his first season as coach. " 'You're probably going to be the most hated guy in Florida.' "

Wright might not be the most hated man in Texas, but some coaches aren't shy about speaking out against IMG Academy.

St. Thomas coach Tim Fitzpatrick is happy for Ausbon, who was a transfer from Episcopal first. But the coach wouldn't play IMG Academy under any circumstances.

"Hopefully, nobody will play them," Fitzpatrick said. "How you put them out of business is you don't schedule them.

"You're playing a mercenary team."

The Ascenders went 9-0 in 2015 and played one game in Texas at DeSoto, winning 49-27.

When reached for comment on playing IMG Academy, DeSoto coach Todd Peterman declined.

Katy matchup unlikely

Wright understands the backlash.

National-type prep schools have been a fixture in basketball for years, but the football version is relatively new. Wright compares the reception he receives to what other schools of this ilk, like Bishop Gorman (Nevada), go through. Wright would welcome playing in Texas again against the likes of Cedar Hill or Katy.

Katy coach Gary Joseph tapped into the missing sense of community when it comes to IMG Academy.

"I've got 450 kids," Joseph said. "It's not just the varsity football team. I've got to have games for the rest of them, too. We've got junior varsity, I've got sophomores, I've got freshman teams. It's about a program. It's about development. I start taking that away from kids, that's hard to explain."